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Spruced up step stool: IKEA Bekvam

If you have the pitter patter thundering sounds of little feet in your home (or perhaps you just have high shelves) chances are you have a step stool. You might even have IKEA's Bekvam step stoollike we do.

We got the Bekvam when Quinn turned one back in November. When I went searching for a toddler step stool, I quickly discovered that most were too short and/or too industrial-looking. We love that the Bekvam has two substantial steps, making it the perfect height(s) for a growing toddler. It's simple silhouette isn't the most compact, which would've been nice given how tiny our kitchen is, but that's OK. Perhaps one day we will get our dream kitchen ;-) The little hole in the middle's great for the 'one-handed grip' to bring it over to the kitchen sink or counter. It's sort of old school & that's why we heart it.

Quinn's grown quite attached to this little step stool. She scales it to the top, causing my heart to skip several beats & grey hairs to sprout on my head (but that's nothing new). She hides underneath it & sits atop it to watch me cook for you know, 47 seconds. She perches on the edge of it to read books. She even colors onit. I scrubbed most of it clean, but there's still traces of Crayola's cornflower blue & rose red (as seen above). It's her flair.

Recently, I gave this step stool a simple paint job. {Note: IKEA recommends that you don't paint this step stool due to the increased risk of slipping, so proceed with caution.} I've seen many painted Bekvams/step stools, so I'm not exactly a trailblazer here. I just added some stripes & a reverse stenciled "1" & "2" (numbers are fun).

All it took was a foam brush & two quick coats. About 30 minutes to take it from taping to painted.

Tip: Remove the tape fairly soon after painting. For the number stickers, I used the blade from an Exacto knife to coax a bit of it up (my clumsy fingers would've smeared the wet paint), then carefully peeled it off.

* Frog Tape did not sponsor this post. Ha! *

As you can see, the lines aren't perfect & there are still traces of Quinn's handiwork.

That just adds to the charm. That's my story & I'm sticking to it.

It makes me smile every time I see it.

Much like the sassy girl who uses it.

Now that I'm seeing it from all angles, I can't help but think dipped legs would be a fun look.

Is this a DIY blogger affliction? We can't leave things well enough alone?

;-)

P.S. My girl Michelle at Ten June gave her Bekvam step stool a sweet makeover & I'm nowsuper convinced I want to dip those legs! I adore that gal; she's one of my most favorite people I've never met. Hand us each a bottle of red wine & watch us perform some IKEA hack magic. It's a beautiful thing.

Aww, I really love this DIY and I love how Quinn actually uses it! The striping and number upgrade is simple but just what it needed. And why does Q look like a kid? I mean, not even a toddler! Ugh. Slow down, sweet girl.

I think it is a DIY blogger's affliction. I have it too, my friend. And now that you've used the phrase "dipped legs" here I can't imagine how you will go on without dipping those legs. Do it!! But even if you don't, this is adorable and I heart it.

At what age was Q able to use the step stool on her own/without you freaking out? Katie decided that tonight was a good time to start climbing on stove using the oven door as a handle and the drawer underneath as her foothold. We definitely need to redirect that behavior!

I think she'll freak me out until she has kids of her own & understands what it's like to worry like this, HA! She's now 21 months old & still freaks me out when she's on it!! We've had to really emphasize "use your butt". It means, "don't stand on the very top step & dance, girl, you're giving us heart attacks!" So yeah, it usually works & she's rarely ever on it unattended. Our kitchen's the size of a shoebox so that helps ;-)

This is special!! I cannot tell you have many times I've gone to Ikea for this damn stool and they can't find it even though it says in stock! But, I wasn't sure how I'd pretty it up- YOUR idea is great. And, yes, we can never leave well enough alone. The dipped legs would be cute too. :)

ha, everyone has that stool. i have two, one for each floor...but i'm a shortie-pants. (um, i have a different ikea step stool for the top floor so that doesn't count, right? i don't have THREE. i'm not insane.)thanks for the ideas for painting it. i keep thinking i'll paint the one that lives in the kitchen but i was a bit wary of ikea's DON'T PAINT THIS OR YOU WILL DIE warning. now i am 5% less scared.

You can NEVER have too many step stools. They're like throw pillows ;-)

I know, those don't paint warnings kept coming back to haunt me as I painted ours. I'm happy to report that no one's fallen off it. Now, my kid HAS tried to launch herself off it into a pile of frozen peas she spilled on the floor. Where are the warnings for that, IKEA?!?

The stool looks SO GOOD! I have one myself and I'm definitely going to try and spruce it up, most likely with your exact same stripes - my baby girl is 11 months old and will soon be in need of it. I have to ask, where is Quinn's dress from? IT'S SO GORGEOUS! But then again, that baby of yours is beautiful and so cute in everything she wears. I'm a fan :)

Thanks so much!! It was such a fun/fast project, hope you enjoy it too!

You are so kind--your sweet words brought a huge smile to my face! Quinn's dress was from Old Navy last year. They only had a 3T left at the time & I scooped it up. Quinn's finally (just barely) fitting into it since she's tall for her age but there's room to grow, lol. I'm a crazy mom. ;-)

I messaged you about this already, but just wanted to say mad props again on your striped version. It's so cute and I love that Quinnie loves it! I can't wait for H to be big enough to do more than just bang on it :) Wait, am I wishing for him to crawl up to the top of a step stool? Yeah, wait, I take that back... that sounds scary! Love your DIY... and you! xo

Ha, thanks, gal! Quinn-ification is where it's at. Until she stops being cute which was approximately 2 minutes into these photos. iPads & snacks make me feel like I'm in control w/ this parenting thing. How come I don't see that sh!t on Pinterest.

I've been looking for a cute stool like this for my kitchen too! Our shelves go up pretty high and constantly asking my man for help reaching things is getting old lol. Love how you painted it! Thanks for the post :) New reader here!

Thanks so much, Emily! The stool is constructed from unfinished wood that appears to have already been sanded. This made it ideal for painting (easy-no prep work) as I found out. Ours is only painted down the middle so I don't know if that helps, but we haven't had any slipping incidents thankfully. It really comes down to the paint sheen you use (i.e., no glossy finishes!) in order to reduce any chance of slipping, I think. Maybe even try a chalk paint!